The defeat was difficult to digest for Benjamin Tison and Adrien Maigret against an opportunistic Portuguese team until the end. After what could be considered a poor performance, the captain of the France team, Pablo Ayma, confided in Padel Magazine to analyze this quarter-final with his expert eye:
“Yesterday's match between Ben and Adrien against the Portuguese was very hotly contested. We lost 6/7 6/7, despite several break opportunities that we failed to seize. The match was played indoors, with high humidity. The ball, in contact with the windows, was very difficult to return. The server had a significant advantage, the defense being extremely complex. Also, the ball was going out a lot and any lob was returned from the line to win the point. The level of play was therefore very tight.”
“Everything is very balanced. It's a shame for Ben and Adrien yesterday, because we were the favourites. Oliveira and his partner played very consistently and well throughout the game. We were better than them, but we made more mistakes in defense and that's why the match ended in two tie-breaks.
By the way, in the second set, leading 4/3 and on serve, Ben slipped and injured his adductor, but luckily he was able to continue playing despite the pain. We lost that game and then the 10/8 tie-break.
In terms of rankings, Ben might have been able to make the difference.”
“In principle, we started as favourites, but the playing conditions on the track leveled the game a lot.”
To summarize, the coach and captain of the men's team, Pablo Ayma, underlines three elements: